WTI drops below $69.00 amid demand fears and uncertainty over OPEC+ production

• WTI price falls to fresh YTD lows of $68.85 in Thursday's early Asian session. 
• OPEC+ could delay the planned oil output increase.
• Concerns of weak demand from China weigh on the WTI price. 

West Texas Intermediate (WTI), the US crude Oil benchmark, is trading around $68.85 on Thursday. WTI price remains under selling pressure and hits the lowest level since December 13, 2023, due to a negative outlook about oil demand in the coming months. 

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies, or OPEC+, was discussing delaying an oil output increase scheduled to start in October as Libyan production is expected to rise. "With demand growth uncertain and significant supply outages looking unlikely, all eyes are again on OPEC+," said Svetlana Tretyakova, senior analyst at Rystad Energy. 

The recent weaker Chinese economic data has prompted concerns about the economic outlook of the world's biggest crude importer. Chinese NBS manufacturing activity fell to a six-month low in August, while the Caixin Manufacturing PMI released on Wednesday came in worse than expected. 

The US crude inventories fell significantly last week. According to the American Petroleum Institute (API), crude oil stockpiles in the United States for the week ending August 30 declined by 7.8 million barrels, compared to a decrease of 3.4 million barrels in the previous week. The market consensus estimated that stocks would decline by just 0.9 million barrels.

Looking ahead, traders will keep an eye on the US ISM Services PMI and weekly EIA Crude Oil stockpiles report, which are due later on Thursday. On Friday, US Nonfarm Payrolls (NFP) for August will take center stage.